As Jay Acker crossed the finish line in the Class A Public 4x400 relay, he raised the baton in the air.
Commerce won the 4x400 relay en route to to Class A Public team title at the Georgia Olympics at Jefferson Saturday.
Acker won state titles in the 1,600 and 800 and anchored the relay for the Tigers, which racked up 99 points. They finished well ahead of second-place Turner County, which tallied 62. Adrian Vaquera (shot put) and Greyson Burke (pole vault) also won state titles for the Tigers. Acker joined with DaJuan Wood, TreTez Barksdale and Lane Sorrow in the 4x400 relay.
It’s the third state track title in school history, Commerce coach Chas Hardy said.
“We knew we had a chance, but kids had to come out and perform. That’s what they did,” Hardy said. “Every kid came out and performed, put up PRs in every single event across the board and did what they did. This is the kids’ championship. They won it. They came out today and Thursday and they had it in their mind that they were going to win this and they did.”
Cedar Shoals capped the day with a state championship in the 4x400 relay. Jonathan Oglesby won the 800-meter run earlier in the day, and Rogerous Swain won the triple jump Thursday. The Jaguars finished with 44 points, enough for second behind Southwest DeKalb, which tallied 58 points.
“That says a lot about the program and the hard work the coaches put in, the parents, the community that supports this program,” Cedar Shoals coach Stefan Smith said. “That just shows up in places like this, the hard work that everyone puts in.”
Clarke Central finished ninth with 21 points.
Landmark Christian snapped Athens Christian’s five-year title streak in Class A Private. Richard Jibunor won the 300 hurdles for the Eagles Saturday, and Dewitt Wood won the 400. Landmark Christian tallied 88 points. Athens Christian finished second with 65 and Athens Academy finished sixth with 38. Prince Avenue Christian nabbed 18 points and finished 12th.
Jefferson tied with Central Carroll for third in Class AAA with 35 points. Cedar Grove won with 74. East Jackson finished fifth with 33 points and Oconee County finished with 15 points and came in 15th.
North Oconee finished 10th in Class AAAA with 10 points.
Correction: The scores and team finishes for Class A Private have been updated.